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STI updates are blog posts from the BCCDC or our community partners about a variety of sexual health topics. These include program updates, clinical practice changes, new research, events, and more. We will not clutter your inbox with frequent emails, and your email address will not be used for any other purposes.
November 29, 2021 by Jason Wong, Associate Medical Director, Clinical Prevention Services, BC Centre for Disease Control
Background HIV prevention continues to be a public health priority in British Columbia (BC). Incidence and prevalence are two measures of disease frequency used to inform our response to the HIV epidemic. Incidence is the number of new infections (both diagnosed and undiagnosed) that occur in an area over a year whereas prevalence is the…
Learn more about HIV incidence and prevalence estimates for British Columbia and Canada in 2018
November 26, 2021 by Jay McBain, Senior Practice Lead for STI/HIV, Clinical Prevention Services, BC Centre for Disease Control
Overview This self directed online course, offered by the BC Centre for Disease Control (BCCDC), is intended for Registered Nurses and other health care professionals who offer HIV testing or prevention services in their communities of workplace. The goals of the HIV Testing Online Course are: To provide the foundation for Nurses to competently provide…
Learn more about The BC Centre for Disease Control has updated the HIV testing course
November 5, 2021 by Heather Pedersen, Online Sexual Health Manager, BC Centre for Disease Control
Since 2016, SmartSexResource has offered a testing & vaccination reminder service where users can sign up for email or text messages letting them know when to make an appointment for regular STI screening, re-testing, PrEP follow-up, or when to book their next dose of HPV or hepatitis vaccination. As of December 1, 2021, this service…
Learn more about Discontinuing testing & vaccination reminder service on SmartSexResource
October 25, 2021 by Sofia Bartlett, Senior Scientist, Clinical Prevention Services, BCCDC
The Annual BC Liver Forum will take place at the Fairmont Hotel Vancouver on November 30 and December 1, 2021. The 9th Annual Liver Forum is free to attend, and will be a hybrid meeting which will include in-person sessions, alongside a simultaneous live online stream for those who prefer to participate virtually. The in-person…
Learn more about Register for the free Annual BC Liver Forum
October 14, 2021 by Kiran Parmar, Research Assistant and Heather Noga, Research Program Manager at the Endometriosis and Pelvic Pain Laboratory, University of British Columbia
Endometriosis is an inflammatory condition where tissue, similar to the endometrial lining, starts growing outside of the uterus. Endometriosis affects 1 in 10 women and an unmeasured number of gender diverse people. Common symptoms include pelvic pain during menstruation, chronic pelvic pain, pain with bowel movements and urination, reduced fertility and abnormal bleeding. Deep dyspareunia,…
Learn more about A New Patient-Centred Resource about Endometriosis and Painful Sex
September 21, 2021 by Lauren Allan, Project Manager, Clinical Prevention Services, BC Centre for Disease Control
The BC Centre for Disease Control (BCCDC) will begin offering Express Testing at the STI clinic in Vancouver, on Tuesday, September 28th. Express Testing is a convenient and fast way to get routine STI/HIV tests, without being assessed by a nurse or physician. The new STI Express Testing appointments are part of an effort to…
Learn more about Time for a Quickie? STI Express Testing is Now Available at the BCCDC STI Clinic
September 14, 2021 by Troy Grennan, Physician Lead, STI Program, Clinical Prevention Services, BC Centre for Disease Control
Mycoplasma genitalium is an STI that can cause genital symptoms similar to other STIs, including urethritis, cervicitis, and discharge. As it is not a reportable infection, and there is currently no evidence to support routine testing, we do not have good data on prevalence. The clinical teams at the BC Centre for Disease Control (BCCDC)…
Learn more about Mycoplasma genitalium: Information and guidance for clinicians in British Columbia
July 15, 2021 by Stephanie Gin, Nurse Educator, Clinical Prevention Services, BC Centre for Disease Control
British Columbia (BC) is now the first province or territory in Canada to recommend one-time birth cohort screening for people born from 1945 to 1965. This update is included in recent revisions to the British Columbia Centre for Disease Control (BCCDC) Communicable Disease Control (CDC) Manual and Guidelines and Protocol Advisory Committee (GPAC) viral hepatitis…
Learn more about Recent Updates to Hepatitis C Testing Guidelines in British Columbia
May 21, 2021 by Monica Durigon on behalf of the University of British Columbia's Continuing Professional Development program (UBC CPD)
Public Health Agency of Canada (PHAC) in partnership with The University of British Columbia’s Continuing Professional Development program (UBC CPD) are conducting focus groups to inform the development of a new online course on sexually transmitted and & bloodborne Infections (STIBBI) barriers to testing. They’re recruiting physicians, nurses and people who access STIBBI care from…
February 12, 2021 by Tessa Lawson Tattersall, Clinical Prevention Services, BC Centre for Disease Control
Background The number of syphilis cases in British Columbia (BC) is increasing significantly, and has reached the highest rate of infection seen in over 30 years. This is echoed by Dr. Bonnie Henry, Provincial Health Officer who has said that alongside the COVID-19 pandemic, we are “still in the midst of an outbreak of syphilis…
Learn more about Help evaluate a faster way of screening for syphilis